Combination Barn
c.1875
This barn dates to c. 1875. It was constructed and stood on Thomas Stevenson’s portion of Lot 18, Concession 6 in Pickering Township. Stevenson purchased his land in 1870. This lot was granted originally to Thomas Elmes Matthews, UEL (United Empire Loyalist), and passed to his son, Peter, upon his death. William Newman purchased the section where the barn stood, in 1951, and later donated it to the museum.
Interchangeably called a “combination barn,” “English barn,” or “three-bay barn,” this style of barn typically housed a combination of grain and livestock. Our barn features a mixture of hand-hewn and sawn timbers. This suggests that sawn timbers supplemented the use of hewn timbers from an older barn. It is likely that Thomas Stevenson built this barn. The style is one that would have been familiar to Stevenson, having emigrated from Ireland to Upper Canada as a young man.
Farmers in the surrounding area used the building up to about 1932 as a beef ring barn. Harvey Liscombe was the butcher. When used as a barn, the stalls housed livestock and the loft stored hay. Note the remnants of a pulley track at the roof peak. This pulley system lifted hay bales from the floor of the barn.
Importing and Breeding of Stock
Agriculture in Ontario shifted from wheat growing to livestock raising, following the fall of the wheat market in the 1860s. Several Pickering farming families emerged as leading stock importers and breeders in Canada and the world.
From the mid-19th century until well into the 20th, Pickering was a hub of purebred livestock. Specialities were Clydesdale horses, Shorthorn cattle, Shropshire and Cotswold sheep, and Berkshire pigs.
Local importers and breeders included the Millers (Brougham, Atha, and Markham), James Ironside Davidson (Balsam), Arthur Johnston and David Birrell (Greenwood), and the Graham brothers (Claremont). These men led the
way in producing the best herds in North America. They won the top prizes at municipal, county, provincial, and even international exhibitions. They also served on executive boards of stock associations.
Key Pickering Stock Breeders
As early as 1888, three prominent local stock breeding family names appear as Directors of the Clydesdale Horse Association of Canada: Robert Graham, Arthur Johnson, and James Davidson (son of James Ironside Davidson), who established his farm in nearby Whitby.
Pickering Farm-Related Milestones
In addition to stock breeding, Pickering farmers and horticulturalists made their mark on the local, provincial, national, and world stage in a variety of ways. Local squire, farmer, school trustee, and artist, Ebenezer Birrell (whose son was a Shorthorn cattle breeder) was the founder and first president of the Ontario County Agricultural Fair. In 1882, Angus McKay, son of early Scottish settler Donald McKay, headed west to homestead in the Northwest Territories. Robert Miller, Ed. Boone, and E. Williamson also moved out west at the same time. They all purchased land in Indian Head, a community in present-day Saskatchewan. The four men farmed together cooperatively, and became known as “The Pickering Syndicate.” In 1887, the Dominion Government began plans to create an experimental farm just outside Indian Head; a year later, McKay was appointed Superintendent of the Experimental Farm. He held the position for 25 years, and was responsible for developing and improving farm and agricultural methods and practices for western farmers. For his work, he received an honourary doctorate degree from the University of Manitoba. He became known as the “Grand Man of Western Agriculture”.
Did you know?
For many years, farmers relied on oxen for farm work. It wasn't until the 1860s - 70s that horses began taking their place. The horses were faster and had better precision for using farm equipment.
Can you find the names of the cow and horse in the combination barn?
Photo: Charles Puckrin's Farm, Salem. Courtesy of the Pickering Public Library.